Manager – Research & Development ( R&D )

Benshaw Inc.•Pittsburgh, PA

20h•Onsite

About The Position

The R&D Manager leads Benshaw’s multidisciplinary engineering team in developing motor control products, from low-voltage soft starters to medium-voltage variable frequency drives. The role owns the technical roadmap, guides the development process, and leads the team responsible for delivering products from concept through production. The manager oversees technology planning and architecture decisions, team hiring and development, product development execution, compliance and quality, and cross-functional collaboration. The position also manages R&D laboratory equipment and test facilities, supports certification and customer issue resolution, and protects intellectual property. The role is onsite at Benshaw’s Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania location and involves approximately 10–15% travel.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or a closely related field.
At least 10 years of experience developing power electronics or motor control products, including at least 5 years leading engineers or engineering projects.
Hands-on design experience with variable frequency drives, soft starters, or similar power conversion equipment.
Strong understanding of power semiconductor devices, including IGBTs and SCRs, gate drive design, magnetics, thermal management, and protection.
Working knowledge of motor control methods, including V/Hz, vector control, and motor protection functions.
Experience taking products through UL, CSA, and IEC certification.
Demonstrated success delivering products to production on schedule using a structured development process.
Clear written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to communicate effectively with engineers, executives, and customers.
Must be authorized to work in the United States on a full-time, permanent basis without restriction or current or future visa sponsorship.

Nice To Haves

BS or MS in Electrical Engineering focused on power electronics or electric machines.
Direct experience with medium-voltage (2.3 kV to 13.8 kV) drives, multilevel topologies, and/or medium-voltage solid-state starters.
Embedded firmware and DSP or FPGA control experience.
Knowledge of industrial communications, including Modbus, EtherNet/IP, and PROFINET.
Knowledge of simulation tools such as PSIM, MATLAB/Simulink, or SPICE.
Experience in heavy industrial markets such as mining, oil and gas, water, or pumping.

Responsibilities

Own the multi-year technology roadmap for low-voltage and medium-voltage soft starters and drives, aligning it with product management and sales.
Guide architecture decisions involving power topologies, semiconductor selection, cooling, and control platforms.
Evaluate and implement technologies such as SiC devices, embedded connectivity, and cybersecurity.
Lead, hire, and develop power electronics, controls, firmware, hardware, and mechanical engineers.
Establish team goals, conduct performance reviews, and build a pipeline of technical talent, including co-ops and interns.
Balance resources across new product development, sustaining engineering, and custom-engineered orders.
Participate in stage-gate development from concept through validation, pilot build, and production release.
Manage project schedules, budgets, and risks, and communicate status to engineering and executive leadership.
Oversee design reviews, DFMEA, design for manufacturability, and design verification testing, including full-power testing.
Maintain engineering documentation, software configuration control, and the engineering change order process.
Ensure products meet applicable UL, IEC, CSA, and NEC standards and requirements.
Coordinate certification testing with UL, CSA, and other agencies, and support IEC-rated product development.
Partner with quality and customer service teams to resolve field failures through root cause analysis and corrective action.
Collaborate with manufacturing, supply chain, applications engineering, field service, and sales on product launches and key customer support.
Manage component obsolescence and supplier qualification for critical parts, including IGBTs, SCRs, and printed circuit board components.
Identify inventions and support patent filings to protect intellectual property.
Manage R&D laboratory equipment and test facilities.